Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu sent his condolences Wednesday to King Abdullah II and to the people of Jordan “for the grisly murder of the air force pilot of the Jordanian air force.”
Netanyahu was referring to Tuesday’s release of a new execution video by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group, showing the January 3rd death of Jordanian air force pilot Muath al-Kasaesbeh. The group killed the pilot by burning him alive in a metal cage.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi also strongly condemned the murder, calling ISIS a “savage, cowardly organization that violates all heavenly doctrines,” the MENA state news agency reported, and also confirmed Egypt’s support for Jordan.
El-Sisi added that the international community “needs to unite to fight terrorism in all its forms and to confront the terrorist groups that use Islamic slogans, even though religion has nothing to do with their actions.”
Netanyahu spoke about the murder while visiting the IDF Hermon Brigade base Wednesday for a briefing by Deputy Chief of Staff Maj.-Gen. Yair Golan and GOC Northern Command Maj.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi. Netanyahu also met with local council chairs from the area.
“In the Islamic State of ISIS they burn people alive,” the prime minister commented. “In the Islamic State of Tehran, they hang them from cranes in the public squares. Both are motivated by an extreme ideology of militant Islamic terrorism that has a cruelty that is unbounded.”
Netanyahu also reiterated that although world leaders are “racing to forge a deal” that would enable Iran to have nuclear weapons, “Israel will oppose this deal, which is dangerous to us, dangerous to the region, and dangerous to the world.
“But the greatest danger to the future and the security of the world is that this extremism will be backed up by nuclear weapons,” he added. “This is something everyone must oppose.”